South East United came from behind to beat Alverstone 4-3 in the NPL Tasmania Regular Season on Saturday. The result leaves both bottom teams still searching for their first victory of the campaign. Alverstone sit ninth with a single point from six games, while South East United remain rooted to tenth on zero points.
The hosts started bright enough. They took the lead in the sixteenth minute and added a second goal forty-two minutes in to build what looked like a comfortable advantage. South East United were not travelling to make up the numbers, but the visitors needed something to change the momentum.
Everything shifted in the eighty-eighth minute when Alverstone received a red card. The numerical advantage did not last long — eleven minutes into stoppage time South East United struck again. The wheels came off for the home side at the worst possible moment.
Alverstone's recent record showed they had been struggling, with only one win against Kingborough Lions in their last five outings. South East United had found some form recently, beating Riverside and Launceston United in their previous fixtures. This result extended the visitors' unbeaten run, though it remains a narrow escape.
Both teams continue to search for that elusive first win. The gap between them in the table has not changed, but the psychology of the result may matter more than the points on offer. Alverstone will reflect on what went wrong after building a lead, while South East United have taken a step toward survival.